More User Reviews:

Purchased from Three Cellars in Franklin, WI. Pours a very dark brown to almost black body with no head. Aroma is smokey and earthy. Full bodied and smooth, even creamy, mouthfeel. There is a nice smoke flavor that plays well with the roasted/burnt malt character. The first sip had me thinking chipotle peppers. I thought this one would be a burden to finish off, but it just kept tasting great to the last drop. (413 characters)

Poured a dark dark brown color with some beige head. Smell was mostly malt, not a whole lot else coming through. Taste is really good. Again a lot of malt in it. Probably a medium bodied mouthfeel. Overall a pretty good beer. I like it, wouldn't mind trying it again sometime. (276 characters)

Very dark auburn brown with a tight grip of beige foam which fails to stand very tall, but leaves a decent amount of lace.Toasted whole grain bagel nose, with backup from caramel, peat smoke, and dark chocolate. Some low-lying coffee ground astringency provides balance, accompanying an even lower level herbal hoppiness. The malt rolls over the tongue, all buttered biscuity- lightly grainy, but moreso doughy. A wave of chocolate follows. Some coffee appears as the sweetness ebbs, as does the peat smoke. Caramel materializes, pushing it sweeter again. As that fades, the smoke reclaims its ground, earthier and ashier now, and slightly more pungent. A small upwelling of herbal bitterness dots the swallow, and brings balance if nothing else. There are no weird yeast/fermentation-driven off-flavors here, which have plagued many of my experiences with O'so. A bit gassy right away, this settles into a sleek, silky malt blanket. It's rich without feeling obese. And this, along with its sweet-dry balance, makes for a completely quaffable Scotch Ale. I got off on the wrong foot with O'so. But stuff like this is winning me over quickly. (1,146 characters)

Made it through six and never reviewed it... here goes with the last bottle.

Into a tulip it pours a dark mahogany, capped off with a billowing head of khaki tan foam on the first pour. Not much lacing, but the foam stays put for quite awhile.

Smells like dried plum and prune, a little sweet with brown sugar and some mild cardamom and nutmeg lingering around the periphery. No smoke or peat here... this is coming from an avid Islay malt fan.

Flavors of dark fruit, cola, some indistinct spices, lightly earthy roast becoming dry and woody in the aftertaste. Even after a few swirls of the glass, it's still sharply carbonated and a bit astringent. Making my way through the six pack over several weeks, it seems this astringency has amplified somewhat. Don't know if it's intentional or not... potentially infected. It's listed as a current seasonal, so I have to think it's fresh... and it's been kept refrigerated. Overall it's interesting at the very least, but may be starting to turn. Be aware there's a good chance of infection unfortunately. (1,057 characters)

had this last year, enjoyed it, grabbed it again this year and thought i should put down a review. new label looks nice ;)

a - pour is a really dark brown, almost black. tan head dissipates quickly but leaves a film of bubbles.

s - familiar scotch ale smell of dark fruits, grain, and roasted malts. The roasted malt is amped up a bit. Not getting any caramel sweetness on the nose.

t - I get the caramel sweetness now, big roasted malt flavor, faint hops bitterness, and not much raisin/plum flavor. Flavor is somewhat weak for a scotch ale. It is *only* 6.3%. I think an imperial version of this would be a phenomenal beer, but it is enjoyable as is.

m - medium body. good carbonation level for the style.

d - lower abv makes for a very drinkable scotch ale.

O'so has been a fairly underwhelming brewery for me, but this is a very good beer. I would like to see a "reserve" batch of this made with a bigger body and flavor. Its hard to say that because its a full flavored beer. (986 characters)

Pours a very dark brown with some crimson highlights. Half-finger off-white head stays around for awhile before falling into a thin cap with some bubbles on top. A bit of spotty lacing. The nose carries some roasted malt and dark fruits, but also shows early signs of an infection. Slight acidic character along with some cherry. The flavor shares the same components with a slight acidity in the finish. Other than that, medium body and low carbonation with a moderate amount of sweetness. Could be a decent enough beer without the sanitation issues. (602 characters)

The taste is outstanding, smoked malt hits first, followed by a balanced malt ending, great for this style. Easy drinker, don't know the abv but it hides it well, whatever it is. Get this if you can, a wonderful wee heavy and perfect for this style.

Update: I've had it in the bottle now and it's unchanged, one of the best Scotch's I've had, beautiful smokiness which most don't have, but not overpowering. Very rich and a great drinker, find it if you can. (548 characters)

S: rich notes of caramel and a touch of butterscotch on the front, some sweetness and bready notes

T: like the nose, the taste is very rich and full of caramel notes, there is a bit of sweetness by mid palate and the finish has a soft bite of hops, things are pretty nicely balanced and refreshing

MF: surprisingly smooth and creamy, has a velvety texture

D: an interesting brew, and my first from Oso's. Haven't heard of a "black" scotch ale, but I don't think the color effects the flavor profile much. This drinks similar to an English iIPA or ESB. (722 characters)

Poured into a pint glass this brew has a nice dark chocolate color with a thick milk chocolate brown head that left nice lacing and settled into a 1/2 inch head. The aroma is so sweet with caramel and vanilla dominant. The taste is a surprise as with most scotch ales I have tried the peat moss smokey taste is overpowering where with this brew it is subtle and adds to the flavor. This is a sweet brew with caramel and brown sugar up front and a mild smokiness that is more of an afterthought than a dominating flavor. This is one of the best I have had from Oso's. I have been very critical of this brewery being down the block and lately they have delivered. Try their brews! (678 characters)

A - Dark brown body without any light able to get through. The head starts out at about an inch and fades rather quick to a nice trace of pale brown at the surface. There's some obvious sticky residue where the head receded.

S - Moderately strong sweet brown sugar aroma.

T - This brew certainly has a smokey flavor over a slight spice and very subtle chocolate. There's also a hint at a bitter-sourness. I rather enjoy it.

M - The feel is more watery that it appears. there's a slight coarse texture toward the end but in the start and middle this brew is very smooth.

~ Overall I recommend this beer. It has some good character and its nice to see a local brewery knockin' out an interesting style, such as the wee-heavy. (728 characters)